


Poker Does Wonders For The Soul

by make_your_user_a_name



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Card Games, Embarrassed Dean Winchester, Fluff, M/M, Map Table, Men of Letters Bunker (Supernatural), Oblivious Castiel (Supernatural), Oblivious Dean Winchester, Poker, Post-Episode: s15e13 Destiny's Child, Sam Winchester is So Done, Supportive Sam Winchester
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-06
Updated: 2020-04-06
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:21:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,187
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23506762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/make_your_user_a_name/pseuds/make_your_user_a_name
Summary: The boys and Castiel decide to play a low-stakes game of poker to unwind from a crazy day. Sam decides to mix it up.Set immediately post 15x13
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester
Comments: 2
Kudos: 104





	Poker Does Wonders For The Soul

“Come on, it’ll be fun. We could use the unwind.” Sam was sitting across the map table, lazily holding a beer in one hand. 

“Since when is poker an unwind for us. It never ends well.”

“Don’t you wanna teach Cas?”

“He knows how.”

“Wait, how?”

“I taught him.” Dean feels a slight blush creep up his neck and he knocks back the rest of his beer in an effort to look nonchalant. 

“Well, now we have to play,” Sam says with a smirk.

“Have to play what?” The brothers turn and see Cas standing in the doorway. 

Before Sam can speak, Dean decides to change the subject. “Jack get to sleep okay?”

“Yes. I believe he is still badly shaken. But your words helped. He’s going to be okay. Eventually.”

“Getting your soul back isn’t the easiest thing,” Sam added, sliding a beer to Cas.

“But it’s better in the long run, right?” Dean was worried about the kid. The image of him falling apart, begging for forgiveness… it had been a lot. And it wasn’t likely to stop haunting him in the near future.

“Definitely,” Sam said. And Cas nodded in silent agreement. 

They sat for a few minutes, basking in the silence. The calm before the storm. And then Cas cocked his head as if remembering something.

“So, what do we have to play?”

Dean guessed there was no way of getting out of it now. And it didn’t honestly sound terrible. A short game of low-stakes poker with his brother and his best friend. What could go wrong?

“Poker. I guess Dean taught you? I wanna see your skills,” Sam laughed. 

“Playing a game may be a good way to relieve stress. The next few weeks aren’t going to be easy.”  
“Yes, well, thank you, sunshine,” Dean said with an exaggerated roll of his eyes and then stood up to grab a deck of cards.

“We’ll play a round, no stakes. Not like we have anything to bet that isn’t shared anyway,” Sam said. 

Sam shuffled and dealt, and they threw in the blinds. They played a few hands, Dean winning the most, and Sam and Cas tied.

“Huh, Dean really taught you well,” Sam said grudgingly, folding with two pairs because there was no way the angel was bluffing. 

“He’s a good teacher.”

Sam snorted and Dean blushed. But the moment passed quickly enough. 

Several hands in and several beers in, Cas’ phone buzzed.

“It’s Sergei. I’ll be right back.”

As the angel left the room, Dean felt himself staring. When he looked back to Sam, his brother had a plotting look on his face. A look he didn’t like at all. 

“What do you say we make this interesting?”

Dean barked a short laugh. “Like you said, we share all the money we got. Anything we bet would mean nothing.”

“I wasn’t talking about money.”

In spite of himself, Dean leaned in. “Okay, then, what?”

“Here’s the deal, I’m gonna fold early next hand. If Cas wins, then you don’t have to do any research for the next week. If you win-”

Dean cut in before he could finish, “What the hell kinda deal is that. I’ll just let Cas win.”

Sam waited a beat and gave his best bitchface. Then, he continued, “If you win, then you have to kiss Cas.”

Dean’s face went bright red. But his voice hardly shook when he answered, “Like I said, I’ll just let Cas win. I hate research.” He pointedly ignored the other half of the deal. 

“And you hate to lose.”

“Not that much,” Dean said with what he hoped was a convincing laugh.

“Yeah, we shall see.” Sam was smirking smugly at him. It would be hard to miss how red Dean’s face had gone, but he prayed Sammy would just let him lose the hand and dropped it. Luckily, he had himself more or less under control when Cas walked back in. 

As promised, Sam folded early. Dean pretended not to notice the knowing looks his little brother kept shooting at him. 

And Cas, the bastard, kept raising the bet. Even after Sam flipped the final card, Cas continued in his confident bluster.

Dean could tell he was bluffing. So he tried to make him fold, forgetting for a moment that he didn’t actually want to win. Of course, Sam had to remind him what they were playing for. 

“Someone’s awfully eager to win this particular hand,” Sam muttered under his breath. 

“Shut up, Sammy.”

“Dean, what’s he talking about?’

“Well, you see, Dean and I have a little bet.”

“I said shut up.”

“Whatever you say.”

Dean matched Cas’ bet and then turned to him, seeing what he would do next. He knew the angel was close to folding, and Dean really should have been out long ago. He had the cards, sure, but this was not a game he wanted to win. 

“I fold,” Cas said, the disappointment obvious on his face. 

Dean couldn’t help himself. He reached out a hand to pat the angel’s back.

“Hey, you played well. I’m proud, man. I really am a great teacher.” His tone was light, playful. 

“A deal’s a deal, Dean.”

 _Dammit, Sammy._ Let it go, will you? But of course, Dean wasn’t going to back out. He’d made the deal, and he’d played the game and won. And Dean Winchester never backed out of a wager.

“Get out of here, Sam.”

“Hell, no. Good try, Dean, but I’m not gonna let you explain it away to Cas and have both of you swallow your feelings for another decade.”

“Dean, what’s he talking about?”

Dean looked up at the tall bunker ceiling, trying to stop his heart from racing and wishing away the heat spreading through him. His ears were tinged pink and he could feel his cheeks getting warmer. 

“C’mon, Dean. You aren’t gonna back out now, are you?”

“Dean, what’s going on?”

“Just do it.”

“Sam, what are you talking about?”

In one swift motion, Dean reached for Cas and pulled him toward him, crashing their lips together. Anything to shut the both of them up. They broke apart and he caught a glimpse of Cas’ eyes widened in shock and his brother’s smug smile. 

“And now I’ll leave. God, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” Sam laughed, walking out of the room. 

“What was the bet?” Cas said, his voice shaking ever so slightly.

_What the hell, I’ve got nothing to lose anyway. And it’s really too late for denial._

“Doesn’t matter, I’ve wanted to do that for a long time anyway.”

“Well, can we do it again?” 

Now it was Dean’s turn to have his eyes widen in shock. Maybe he’d wanted to do that for a long time, but never in a million years did he even let himself consider that Cas would be okay with it, would _like_ it. 

“Of course, angel,” he smiled and reached for that mess of black hair, pulling him gently closer, and meeting those chapped lips that were turned upward in a soft smile with his own. 

“Of course.”


End file.
